The Tree of Life is one of two plants mentioned in Genesis, the first book of the Old Testament. The verses describe the Garden of Eden, the idyllic home of the first humans, Adam and Eve. According to the text, God provides the couple with unlimited food from the Tree of Life. While theologists suggest the Tree of Life is a living plant, the tree has also come to symbolize obedience to God.
On the other side of the Garden was the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam and Eve were warned not to eat from this tree but were persuaded into consuming the fruit by Lucifer disguised as a snake. After this betrayal, Adam and Eve were expelled from Eden and barred from accessing the fruits of the Tree of Life.
As a result, Adam, Eve, and all of their human descendants must now endure pain, sorrow, and death. However, the Book of Revelation indicates that God will recreate the Tree of Life as a source of sustenance for believers. Today, Tree of Life churches follow the belief that an active relationship with God reestablishes the conditions associated with the original Tree of Life.